Middlesex Turnpike (Massachusetts)

There are original fragments remaining in the Billerica State Forest, alongside Route 3, and again north and south of Rangeway Road.

From Billerica, the Middlesex Turnpike continued northwest to Chelmsford, and then along the bank of the Merrimack River to Tyngsborough.

As its route closely paralleled that of the Middlesex Canal, and later the railroad, it suffered stiff competition for both freight and passenger traffic.

U.S. Route 3, the expressway largely built in the 1950s from Burlington to Tyngsboro, is substantially parallel to the Middlesex Turnpike.

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation is upgrading the Middlesex Turnpike in cooperation with the Towns of Burlington, Bedford and Billerica based on concept plans developed in the 1980s.

Billerica is planning that phase 3 become a multi-modal corridor—a green road plus 3 modes, including transit, bike lanes and sidewalks for pedestrians.

The work begins between Crosby Dr and the Shawsheen River and continues north to between Manning Rd and the Mobil station/Nutting Lake post office.